Another parklet has officially opened in Seattle, this time downtown about a block away from Pike Place Market. Located at 1516 2nd Avenue (in front of the new Elysian Bar), the Chromer Building Parklet is one of more than 10 parklets--free public park-like spaces funded, designed, built and maintained by the applicant--that has popped up or is in the works around the city.

There’s something both sweet and foreboding about Rachel Denny’s work—her animal “trophies” bring taxidermy to mind, but instead of fur, fins or feathers, these mounted specimens are clothed in human trappings: cashmere cable-knits, lace tatting, felt, coins and in at least one case, candy wrappers. Her new show, Strange Menagerie, includes a blue-yarn billy goat, a deer head festooned with lamé accents and crystals, and a sequined snake. None of the animals have eyes—the sockets are instead demurely covered in fabric.

We at Seattle magazine throw a good party. You would know that if you happened to attend our summery rooftop wine event Red, White & Brew or our second annual Brew Seattle, which bubbled over with excitement this past October at the Fremont Foundry.

We asked and you answered. Seattle magazine readers cast their votes months ago for their favorites in a number of categories--everything from takeout joints to pool halls. Here are the results from this year's Readers' Choice Poll. BEAUTYBest Salon for Cuts and Color Fix Salon Roosevelt; fixsalonseattle.com Best Blow-Dry/Styling Bar Swink

Yes, the NBA season is underway, and no, we still don’t have a team, but there’s another lineup in town that survived the 2008 buyout and continues to take Seattle by storm. We have to wait until June for their games to restart, but we didn’t want the year to pass without toasting to the Seattle Storm’s just-finished fifteenth season and the history of women behind the franchise.

As promised, there was another protest at Westlake Center last night opposing the grand jury's decision not to indict the police officer who shot and killed black teen Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. In efforts to not to replay Friday's mall swarms, the police came in larger numbers yesterday and managed to contain the crowd. But why has this group chosen the start of holiday shopping season as the moment to protest Brown's death--what does consumerism have to do with race?

Must See Aham Oluo's New Show at On the Boards (12/4 to 12/7, times vary) Musician/composer/comedian/writer Aham Oluo's show Now I'm Fine combines monologues with original jazz compositions performed by a live orchestra and chronicles a specific six-month period in 2006 during which he went through a host of health and emotional issues.

A bipartisan legislature in Olympia couldn't get background checks passed, but bipartisan agreement among the people finally did.
Washington's successful gun control ballot measure (I-594), which requires background checks on all gun sales, was enthusiastically supported by liberals, but it passed last November with strong support from some traditional Republican voting areas.

Local actors Jessica Skerritt and Dane Stokinger don’t have to stretch too far for their roles this holiday season. The married couple plays a married couple (Ralphie’s mother and father) in the musical A Christmas Story (11/25–12/30; times and prices vary. The 5th Avenue Theatre, 1308 Fifth Ave.; 206.625.1900; 5thavenue.org). And it’s not the first time the duo has used their natural chemistry to their advantage.

For those of you who didn't get all the shopping out of your system on Black Friday, today is Cyber Monday. And there are steals and deals to be had. But before your bank account dwindles even further, let's read up on what's going on around the city:

Must CheerThe Seahawks Take on The 49ersThursday (11/27) The Seahawks play sworn enemies the San Francisco 49ers for the first time since beating them out for last year's Super Bowl slot. San Francisco may have a fancy new stadium, but we must'nt let them forget: we have those shiny rings.

“There’s sometimes a misconception that this is an uplifting show,” Ahamefule “Aham” Oluo says. A smile curls at the edges of his deadpan voice, but it comes from a place of sincerity, not scorn. His tall frame folded into a café chair at a coffee shop in his neighborhood, Columbia City, he is discussing his new show, Now I’m Fine. It’s a sort of jazz performance memoir, a dark and funny pop opera that shrinks and swells from intimate portrait to sweeping emotion. “I would say it’s neutral,” Oluo continues.